HFEA statement on mitochondrial donation

Read our statement as we approve the first application by Newcastle Fertility at Life for the use of mitochondrial donation to treat patients.

HFEA Chair Sally Cheshire said:

"I can confirm today that the HFEA has approved the first application by Newcastle Fertility at Life for the use of mitochondrial donation to treat patients.

"This significant decision represents the culmination of many years hard work by researchers, clinical experts, and regulators, who collectively paved the way for Parliament to change the law in 2015 to permit the use of such techniques.

"Patients will now be able to apply individually to the HFEA to undergo mitochondrial donation treatment at Newcastle, which will be life-changing for them, as they seek to avoid passing on serious genetic diseases to future generations."

ENDS

Notes:

This licence does not represent the culmination of a two-stage process, rather this is a licence only for the first stage relating to clinic’s capacity to perform the techniques, and no patient application has been approved. This will form part of the next stage.